1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates generally to a tape loading device for digital-audio tape cassette recorders and video cassette tape recorders and, more particularly, to miniature cassette recording and/or reproducing apparatus of that kind.
2. Description of the Background
In previously proposed miniature cassette recording and/or reproducing apparatus, the change-over between a loading mode and an unloading mode and the successively conducted loading and unloading of the tape are carried out using only a single motor, and in order to obtain the necessary torque the motor is required to rotate at a low speed.
If the loading mechanism is merely moved between an advanced position and a return position thereof, the motor need not be particularly powerful, but when the loading mechanism reaches its advanced position in a loading operation it is acting against the force of a limiting spring, so that the motor is required to have relatively large power. Once again, to obtain such large power the motor has to be driven at a low speed. Thus, the change-over operation between the loading mode and the unloading mode will be also carried on at a low speed.
In other words, if the change-over operations between the loading mode and the unloading mode and the actual loading and unloading of the tape are carried out by only a single motor, both operations can not be conducted at high speed, so that they will take a relatively long time.